General Conference elected new bishops to serve newly formed episcopal areas. MidTexas is a part of Episcopal Area 2 along with the Bulgaria, Mexico, Afrika Makarishi, Korean American, and Northeast Conferences. Bishop Kenneth Levingston will continue serving as the bishop of MidTexas until October 31, 2026. Rev. Jonathan Lee was elected to serve Area 2 and will begin his service on November 1, 2026.
We cannot thank Bishop Levingston enough for his service to our conference. His humble spirit, personal holiness, and powerful preaching have left an indelible mark on us all. We will always be grateful for his service as our inaugural bishop in the GMC.
With her service concluding as an active bishop of the GMC, Bishop Emeritus Leah Hidde Gregory will now return full time to the office of MidTexas Superintendent. As you may know, the Conference Superintendent provides spiritual and temporal leadership for the annual conference, working alongside our clergy and laity to pursue our shared mission. The Book of Doctrine and Discipline describes that work as including helping establish the vision and missional strategy of the conference, encouraging clergy and laity to embrace that mission, strengthening and multiplying local churches, overseeing the work of the conference, supervising the cabinet, and working with our Presiding Elders in the appointment process. Obviously, we could not have a finer person to continue fulfilling this role than Bishop Emeritus Gregory.
So please join us in welcoming our new episcopal officer, Bishop Elect Jonathan Lee. We look forward to working with him at the Annual Conference where “Local churches make disciples for Jesus Christ and spread scriptural holiness across the globe. The MidTexas Annual Conference exists to energize and equip local congregations for faithfulness and to keep pastors and congregations connected for Kingdom success.”
Ryan Barnett
COO, MidTexas Conference
Global Methodist Church
